Assessing Student's Needs for Assistive Technology (ASNAT)

Chapter 1 - Assistive Technology Assessment
of the meeting for a telephone call, they can quickly “catch up” on what was said when they are able to
refocus on the discussion. At the same time, if a group member contributes a solution before the team
has finished contributing all the information necessary to identify the problem, the recorder can quickly
note the “suggested solution” over under Solution Generation, and redirect the entire group back to
completing Problem Identification.
Create a shared group memory. Recording what is being said where it is visible to all, adds visual
memory to auditory memory and doubles the likelihood that everyone will remember, in the same way,
the information that was discussed. This helps create a shared group memory, one that is very similar
across all members of the group. It greatly increases the likelihood of follow through from team
members.
Share roles and responsibilities. Team members may be hesitant to take a leadership role in
conducting team meetings. Rotating roles from one meeting to the next is an effective way to share this
responsibility. At each meeting one team member can serve as facilitator, while another is recorder,
and still another acts as timekeeper to keep the group moving through the discussion. It is important
that the team move at a pace that will allow the most time at the most important discussion points and
keep the team from getting side tracked or bogged down (Fox & Williams, 1991). In addition, this
rotation of roles helps insure that each team member recognizes and respects the contribution each of
these participants makes to effective decision making.
During Problem Identification:
Address not only the characteristics of the student, but also of the environments in which the
student functions, and the tasks that need to be done. Many times when technology is abandoned, it
is because only the physical, psychological, and social characteristics of the child are addressed, with
little or no attention paid to the settings which the device will be used or the specific tasks that the child
really needs to address (Cook & Hussey, 1995). The SETT framework (Zabala, 1994) helps team
members to focus on the student (his/her personal characteristics and interests), the environment
(including physical characteristics of the setting as well as instructional activities and arrangements), and
the task (which are the specific activities that the target student needs to be able to do in each
environment). This focus is helpful in clearly identifying and defining the problem so that the team has a
clear focus to guide them as they generate appropriate alternatives and solutions.
During Solution Generation:
When generating solutions, use brainstorming rules to create a climate of trust. An important factor
in generating a variety of useful alternatives during Solution Generation is to create a climate of trust by
following brain storming rules. This means that all suggestions are written on the board or chart, no
comments are allowed and no judgments are passed. The goal is to generate as many ideas as possible.
As the flow of ideas slows, it is a good idea to persevere a little longer. Often the second wave of ideas
are the most innovative. If everyone is feeling sluggish and suggestions are few, energy may be
increased by putting a two minute time limit in place to get things started. This short time limit
combined with writing everything where it can be seen increases the creativity and allows the group to
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